5 questions I ask when a new client says they’re struggling to conceive
First of all, I feel so much for you if you’ve been trying to conceive (TTC) and are struggling on the emotional rollercoaster of expectation, hope, trust, and disappointment. I too remember that feeling during the" “two week wait” when confirmation of your intended pregnancy couldn’t come any sooner.
I’ll address how to cope with this waiting period in a future post, but today I wanted to share with you some of the initial questions I ask my new clients when they share with me that they’ve been trying month after month to TTC without success.
1.Are you timing sex appropriately?
Not everyone ovulates on day 14 of their cycle! Tracking your fertility signs, understanding how to predict and confirm ovulation, and how to use your cycle data to interpret your overall state of hormone health is SO valuable!
Action step 1: If you’re interested in learning one tool you can use to identify your fertile period so that you can time sex appropriately, join my free masterclass where I show you exactly what you can do!
Action step 2: Start using a tool like the Tempdrop Basal Body Temperature (BBT) armband (use code AFANISAWOODALL for a major discount) to begin tracking your thermal shifts (which indicate ovulation). You can learn more about the value of tracking your BBT here.
2. Have you optimized your diet?
By “optimized” I mean: have you shifted your diet to include more baby-building nutrient dense foods to support balanced blood sugar and provide your liver with the proper nutrients to resource the process of detoxification so that your hormones can maintain better balance?
Are you eating in a way that supports healthy digestion?
In my course Resilient Motherhood, I teach you all of these strategies in an easy-to-apply, step-by-step approach, including over 130 delicious culturally-inspired recipes!
Action Step: As you begin taking steps in the right direction to optimize your preconception diet, I’d highly encourage, at the bare minimum, taking Her package as a great starting point, a way to introduce essential fertility nutrients in a food-based way.
Preparing to get pregnant in the next year?
3. Have you had any functional fertility or nutrient lab testing done?
Functional lab testing identifies not just your total levels of nutrients or hormones in your body but how they are functioning.
Nutritional genomics testing can help identify ways that your personal genetics are influencing if you are converting plant-based, non-bioavailable forms of certain nutrients into bioavailable forms that you use in your body, I share an example of the genetic effect on vitamin A conversion in this post here (which impacts 40% of the population- including my husband and both of my children!)
How well is your body processing and metabolizing excess hormones?
Do your enzymes have the nutritional resources to support healthy hormone balance (more on that here)?
Where in your metabolic pathways is your hormone clearance funnel getting “clogged up”, so to speak?
These are some of the tests that I recommend for my clients (which I can order and offer report reviews for in our Resilient Motherhood VIP coaching sessions):
In this image you’ll see a screenshot of a client’s DUTCH Comprehensive results. Notice how the two forms of estrogen that I circled remain unmetabolized, indicated by red arrows pointing to the region of excess.
So in my efforts in helping this client will be, in part, to support her methylation processes and overall detoxification ability to support improved estrogen elimination (read more here about what happens if you have excess estrogen- hint: PMS, heavy and/or painful periods, irregular cycles, acne, migraines and much more).
Action step: Work with me to get functional hormone testing done so we can address the barriers to your fertility and hormone challenges and get you pregnant once and for all!
4. Has he gotten checked?
It may seem obvious, but it takes 2 to make a baby. Because we as women are the ones who are responsible for “conceiving” (and for a variety of other reasons), the burden of conception often falls on women, even if male-factor infertility is at play.
Did you know for couples who experience infertility, 50% of them are due to male-factor infertility?
If you’ve been trying to conceive for 6 months of more (or less depending on how quickly you’re wanting to conceive), I’d highly encourage him to get a semen analysis test done. This is a test where he will be referred to a facility that will collect his semen and test it to identify the total sperm count as well as the motility (ability to swim) and morphology (normal/abnormal shape) of his sperm.
Listen to my Resilient Fertility Podcast episode, “Optimizing Preconception Health: The Impact of Male Fertility on Pregnancy and Future Generations” where I’ve invited a renowned fertility expert, Ayla Barmmer (of FullWell Fertility), who has dedicated years of research and practice to understanding the intricacies of female and male fertility and its profound impact on the entire reproductive process. Ayla Barmmer shares invaluable insights and practical advice to empower both women and men in optimizing their preconception health for the best possible outcomes.
In my preconception preparation course, Resilient Motherhood, I elaborate on what the optimal levels of each of those numbers provided in the semen analysis are and exactly what steps he can take in the preconception period to enhance his sperm quality (hint: it’s many of the same changes I recommend women take, with some other very specific and different recommendations).
Many fertility clinics may say “he’s fine” when looking at the semen analysis but what they don’t share is that the lab reference ranges of total sperm counts, motility and morphology are comparing to the modern “norm” and the level of sperm quality has been drastically plummeting over the last 50 years. This is why in my course, I share the “optimal” numbers, not the “common” numbers.
Infertility is common, but common doesn’t necessarily mean normal.
Period pain is common, but common doesn’t necessarily mean normal.
* Insert sign of hormonal-imbalance here * is common but common doesn’t necessarily mean normal.
5. Is your husband making the same habit changes you are?
The most impact your husband can have on the outcomes of your pregnancy and the health of your baby is in the preconception period.
Taking steps to improve testosterone levels and sperm quality is a really good start!
Action step 1: Download my full preconception preparation checklist where I share even more steps you and your husband can take to prepare for the healthiest pregnancy possible.
Action step 2: I highly recommend Heart and Soil’s Whole Package for my clients, I’ve heard many positive reports and seen direct increases in testosterone levels and sperm quality when I’ve had clients take this organ-based supplement. FullWell’s Fertility Booster is also a great antioxidant support product for both mens and women’s fertility (use code ANISAW10 for a discount)!
Why not imagine…
Saving thousands of dollars on unsuccessful fertility treatments (that don’t even align with your values in the first place)
Conceiving as soon as you and your partner are ready
Beginning a pregnancy doing everything in your power to create the healthiest baby possible
Understanding how to interpret your body's fertility signs to optimize your chances of successful conception
Another pregnancy without the complications you had in previous pregnancies
In my online course Resilient Motherhood: A self-paced guide to preparing for pregnancy and beyond, I offer you the tools and wisdom to optimize your fertility and optimize your chances for a healthy pregnancy, whether you wanted a baby yesterday or still have yet to meet “the one”.
Resilient Motherhood is for you if you want to…
Create the healthiest environment to grow your future baby.
Gift your child with the foundations of resilient health.
Minimize complications in pregnancy, during birth and postpartum.
Heal yourself from chronic hormonal birth control use or restore your nutrient status after a prior pregnancy.
Build and maintain a high level of health throughout your transition to motherhood.
Learn to listen to and trust your intuition on the motherhood journey.
